Nutmeg! is a forthcoming football management game with a card-based twist and a love of English league football of the 80s and 90s. So, while the game may not strictly be a retro title in terms of its appearance, you could argue that a card-based game is very retro indeed, and Nutmeg! certainly has a retro setting, being set in the world of English league football (soccer) in the 1980s and 1990s.

Nutmeg! will see players take a step back in time to manage their favorite teams over a 20-year period. Players will start with a Division Four team and try to take them to the top of the table to unlock teams in the higher divisions. Players will do this by using knowledge of football’s past to snap up legendary players before their salaries get too inflated! A bit like if they had access to Biff’s Sports almanac from Back to the Future 2!

Like football (soccer) itself, Nutmeg! Is a game of two halves. Players manage their team by setting training schedules and transferring players, answering calls from the press, buying merchandise, and adjusting ticket prices for home games. They then combine cards generated from training to develop new tactics and build a deck that even Fergie couldn’t sniff at.

Players then head onto the pitch for fast-paced card battles, diving into the match at key points to ensure their boys do good. Stop an attack, gain control of the ball, and prove the team’s bouncebackability with a well-played card to shift the odds in your favor and get one in the back of the net.

Originated at Secret Mode in conjunction with the apprentices at the Sumo Digital Academy, the Nutmeg! team was called up by Sumo Sheffield as it entered full production. It will launch on PC in 2026. With Nutmeg! And Kevin Toms Football Star Manager (on which we previously reported) both limbering up, now’s a great time to be a fan of retro-style football (soccer) management games on PC!